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Wednesday, 10 April 2013

I've tried out many fake tan brands over the years, but this is my first foray with He-Shi, who have launched a brand new Luxury Gift Set this month. The set comprises of two of He-Shi's bestselling items; their Exfoliating Body Wash and the Express Liquid Tan. These two full size products come with a Tanning Mitt and include a free purple faux crocodile print bag. So what are the products like?

The first step to successful self-tanning is to exfoliate the skin. You don't want any dry or flaky patches showing through because the tan will look uneven leading to an unnatural looking finish. He-Shi's Quick & Easy Exfoliating Body Wash contains micro-dermabrasion crystals to remove any of this dry, dead skin. These scrubby particles feel like tiny pieces of salt and are effective in doing their job. Personally I'd prefer a more abrasive scrub, but I love the (albeit artificial), fruity scent to this body wash. It also lathers up a treat and didn't dry out my skin.

Onto the tan itself and my, my, this is good stuff! There are so many different variations of self-tan on the market now from mousses to sprays etc, but He-Shi's Quick & Easy Express Liquid Tan is just a straight up and simple liquid formula. On paper, this sounds messy and frankly terrifying, but in reality, it was remarkably easy to use providing that you use it with the included sponge Tanning Mitt. With the mitt, I just swept it onto dry, clean skin, and it produced a natural looking tan after it had devloped properly. If you want it darker, you can just apply an extra layer over the top.

I didn't notice any streakiness, and it has a typical fake tan scent, but this fades after your first shower. The Liquid Tan does tan the skin instantly, but when used with the mitt it was easy enough to manage, especially when it came to tricky areas like the back (although it's still best if you can find someone to help you with that!). On me, one all over application lasted around 4-5 days before I started to notice it fading. Not bad at all!